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Back From The Break

03 Mar

Well time to get back from the break.  My Mom caught shingles back around the time I stopped writing in the middle of December.  With that I decided to take a little break.  I thought we might lose her as the medicine she was taking for her arthritis depleted her immune system, so getting shingles on face and close to the brain was a perfect storm.  She has recovered rather well now although the infection took a little toll.  She is in a close by nursing home where we get to pop in on her every day.

God is wonderful as always.  The thing my brother and I prayed for was the right answer.  We went to the hospital the next day about a week in and serious considerations had to be made on the next steps.  Mom had her best day by far and the answer was given to us.  Praise our wonderful Lord.

Much has been happening in the world.  Much has been happening in our country.  I enjoyed the Seahawks winning the Super Bowl.  I’m a big fan.  In the sports world as also in the rest of the ends of the earth we are getting a full dose of gay rights.  If one takes the stance of literal Bible interpretation the matter, the world stands ready to pounce on you.

I hate racism.  God made all skin colors, races, etc.  Today the media is using Jackie Robinson’s story and putting it along the same lines as those with the choice of sexual preference.  Those who disagree about it being right or wrong are being thrown into the same category.  This is the way Satan works.

Love the sinner, hate the sin.  Those in the world and without the Word of God can’t distinguish between the two.

What is sin?  It’s missing the mark on God’s ways.  We are all sinners.  God died for all sinners.  However we are asked to look at it as sin and ask for forgiveness, not elevate it as our natural way of life.  This is on all sin, not just one.  The Lord wants us to keep on moving closer to Him in our lives.

We all know that in racism it begins at hating someone because of a certain ethnic background or skin color.  Where does racism end?  When you don’t hold any hateful or ill feelings towards a race or ethnic group because they are from that origin.

Where does sexual preference end?  Man and Man, Woman and Woman?  I don’t think so.  There are many different groups of sexual preference.  Where does it end?  Others will feel discriminated against.  There are those who prefer young children, others who prefer animals, etc.  Don’t kid yourself.  They may be more of a minority, but if the Bible isn’t your guide, where do you have the right to say it’s wrong?

Where does morality come from?  Society?  Whatever the populous says is alright makes it alright?  Right now many in society say it’s alright to abort a life that has started.  That’s bringing life to a halt.  Don’t intervene and it continues on.  Does the populous vote to allow abortion make it right?  If in America the law stated you could kill one person a year if you were drawn in a tag, would it be alright?

No.  Democratic vote doesn’t make something wrong or right.  The One who created everything and the rules, is the One who has authority to say rather it’s right or wrong.

Leviticus 18:1-23 – 1The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘I am the Lord your God. 3 You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices. 4 You must obey my laws and be careful to follow my decrees. I am the Lord your God. 5 Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them will live by them. I am the Lord.

6 “‘No one is to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the Lord.

7 “‘Do not dishonor your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother; do not have relations with her.

8 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; that would dishonor your father.

9 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere.

10 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter; that would dishonor you.

11 “‘Do not have sexual relations with the daughter of your father’s wife, born to your father; she is your sister.

12 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your father’s sister; she is your father’s close relative.

13 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s close relative.

14 “‘Do not dishonor your father’s brother by approaching his wife to have sexual relations; she is your aunt.

15 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife; do not have relations with her.

16 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife; that would dishonor your brother.

17 “‘Do not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. Do not have sexual relations with either her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter; they are her close relatives. That is wickedness.

18 “‘Do not take your wife’s sister as a rival wife and have sexual relations with her while your wife is living.

19 “‘Do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during the uncleanness of her monthly period.

20 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife and defile yourself with her.

21 “‘Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.

22 “‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable.

23 “‘Do not have sexual relations with an animal and defile yourself with it. A woman must not present herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it; that is a perversion.

You know what the devil was selling as the serpent in the Garden of Eden?  If you eat of that fruit you will be like God knowing good and evil.  You will be the God of your own life and can choose to do anything you want.  That was the fall.  That the lie.  Anyone that believes that whatever they choose to believe is right and wrong and that is all that matters has bought into that lie.

We need to seek God.  We need to choose His sacrifice of forgiveness and accept that death of Jesus on the cross as our own.  We then need to make Him Lord.

Because the only opinion that will matter when we take our last breath and stand in front of the Creator, is His.

We need to continue to love everyone like our Lord commanded.  But we are also to stand firm on the Truth of His Word, not the world.

 
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God Gave Them Over

05 Dec

When man doesn’t want to follow God or His Truth’s, what does the Word say?

1 Samuel 8:1-22- 1When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.

4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.”

6 But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”

10 Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. 12 Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. 15 He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. 16 Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18 When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”

19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We want a king over us. 20 Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.”

21 When Samuel heard all that the people said, he repeated it before the Lord. 22 The Lord answered, “Listen to them and give them a king.”

The Lord is the one who went before them and fought their battles, but Israel didn’t want that anymore.  They wanted a king, like all the other nations around them.  So God had them warned and then turned them over to their sinful request.  Let’s continue on.

Romans 1:21-32 – 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

26 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Kind of scary that not only does God turn over those who chase after evil but those who continue to approve and support those things are held accountable also.  Makes one think they should take their voting record a little more seriously.  Morality is important to the Lord.  To say it’s none of your business how people live and then cast your vote is a vote in favor of that action.  You don’t have to participate in the act.  Onto the next verses.

2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 – 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.

If you don’t want God or the Truth, He won’t force it upon you.  In fact, if you want things that are in contradiction of Him and His holiness, He will turn you over to the things your heart desires.  Scary?  It should be.  In a culture where the finger gets pointed in the other direction, God has to be talking about somebody else here, right?

No.  We all are from perfect, but we have to take serious the warnings we receive from our Loving Lord.  He wants our worship.  However, if we want to choose to worship something else, eventually He’ll turn us over to it.

Let’s stay in the Word, seek His face.  Let’s ask Him to show His desires for our lives.  This world is full of evil.  We are bombarded by it daily.  Seek Him and give yourself over to Him.

 
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Godliness With Contentment Is Great Gain

24 Nov

1 Timothy 6:6-11 –6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.  11 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

So what does it seem like every American around us is pursuing?  Righteousness?  Godliness?  Faith?

The world looks at those things as almost an unrealistic mock.  As a result the world is a sad place.

Why?

John 10:10 – 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; ……………

Many a time, people as a whole don’t seek God past one commitment.  Sounds like the old school joke of a couple that gets married and the husband tells his wife that he told her once he loved her and if that changes he’ll let her know.

That’s how people can base their life with Christ.  They ask Jesus once to forgive their sins and then never seek Him ever again.  They never really sought Him in the first place.  They never really made Him Lord.  They never change anything about their lifestyle, so I suppose go and try to sin no more is out also.

Others make the Lord what they want Him to be, then they seek that.  Convenient, but no truth to go along with it.

So what’s a good start to seeking God and Jesus?

Be content what the blessings you have.  You aren’t taken one possession out of this world.  By the way that’s not a nice philosophical statement that most pass it off as, but the truth and a warning.  Those who want to get rich fall into temptation.  Those who want to get rich…love money.  That love is the root of all sorts of evil.  Then eventually comes grief.  So we know those are things we should stay clear from.  How about more do’s?  We should pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.  Know His Word.

How does John 10:10 end? …. I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

 
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Rather Be A Doorkeeper In The House Of My God

12 Nov

Psalm 84:10 – 10 Better is one day in your courts
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

The world doesn’t have more offer to offer than our loving Lord.  Yet the majority of humans still choose to pump all their work and efforts into the short term.

The whole New Testament is about dying to our earthly selfish life and serving a forgiving, loving King.  It’s about being an example, a witness, and working for the Kingdom of our Lord.

1 Corinthians 7:22-23 – 22 For the one who was a slave when called to faith in the Lord is the Lord’s freed person; similarly, the one who was free when called is Christ’s slave. 23 You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of human beings.

Our Lord has everything to offer.  He even says that we can’t even fathom the things that He has for those who love Him.

1 Corinthians 2:9 – 9 However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,
what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”
the things God has prepared for those who love him—

What do the wicked have to offer?  A temporary reward for wrongdoing?

If someone threatened to kill you if you didn’t believe their way instead of God’s way, what does that person have to offer you?  A few extra years under their murderous system?  A chance for you to turn your back on the Truth?

You see they have nothing to offer.  The world has nothing to offer.

Better one day in your house, better one day in your courts, than thousands elsewhere.  Jesus has eternal life and eternity in Heaven to offer, the others only have a worldly lie that is extremely temporary.

 
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Quiz: What Did God Create First?

02 Nov

Make your guesses.  Think back to what you’ve read.  What did God create first?  Remember?

It’s not found in Genesis 1.

Proverbs 8:22-31 – 22 “The Lord brought me forth as the first of his works,
before his deeds of old;
23 I was formed long ages ago,
at the very beginning, when the world came to be.
24 When there were no watery depths, I was given birth,
when there were no springs overflowing with water;
25 before the mountains were settled in place,
before the hills, I was given birth,
26 before he made the world or its fields
or any of the dust of the earth.
27 I was there when he set the heavens in place,
when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep,
28 when he established the clouds above
and fixed securely the fountains of the deep,
29 when he gave the sea its boundary
so the waters would not overstep his command,
and when he marked out the foundations of the earth.
30 Then I was constantly at his side.
I was filled with delight day after day,
rejoicing always in his presence,
31 rejoicing in his whole world
and delighting in mankind.

Of course it’s not the only the area where we find that God had a helper from the very beginning on creation.

John 1:1-3 – 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

Proverbs 8 isn’t the only place where we learn Jesus helped create, but it is the place that confirms He was the first of God’s works.

Jesus isn’t just your Savior, He’s also involved in your creation.  He died in our place for our debt for those who will accept it and make Him Lord.  Creator, Savior, Lord, loving, He is definitely worthy of our honor, glory, and praise.

 
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What Do You Give A God That Has And Made Everything?

24 Oct

YOUR HEART!

You see God and Jesus made everything.

John 1:3 – 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

And you thought it was hard buying things for certain people at Christmas?

The Lord wants us to choose Him to be God…..with our freewill that doesn’t have to.

The thing we can give our Lord that He can’t control is our hearts.  Our obedience.  Our love.

No brainer?  Most people will not.  Many live their lives anyway they want, believe what they want to believe, do what they want to do.  Then after all that, believe that they have made Jesus Lord.

So many people believe religion is about don’ts.  Maybe religion is, but making Jesus Lord is a lot about the do’s that are forgotten.

 
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What Is Truth?

17 Oct

This post was inspired by our service this last Sunday by Pastor.

John 18:37-38 – 37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

38 “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews….

I stopped in mid verse not to take this out of context but to point out Pilate’s reaction.  Pilate asks Jesus, “What is Truth?”  However it really wasn’t a question at all was it?  He retorted.  He wasn’t interested in hearing what the truth was.

Yet Jesus told Pilate, He (Jesus) came into the world to testify of the truth and everyone on the side of truth listens to Him.

Pay close attention when observing the world.  They don’t want truth.  What is the Truth?

John 14:6 – 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

So it’s not only what is truth, but Who is the Truth.

If you believe all roads lead to Rome, that’s not the truth according to God’s Word or Jesus.

What is Truth?  The Word of God is Truth.  Jesus is the Truth and Jesus is the Word.  Sadly enough most will either not ask the question, or ask it, and have no desire to really hear it.  Don’t be one of those people.  Know the Word, know the Truth.

 
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The More It Remains The Same

07 Oct

I was in my One Year Bible and came across this in Isaiah.

Isaiah 30:9-11 –  9 For these are rebellious people, deceitful children,
children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction.
10 They say to the seers,
“See no more visions!”
and to the prophets,
“Give us no more visions of what is right!
Tell us pleasant things,
prophesy illusions.
11 Leave this way,
get off this path,
and stop confronting us
with the Holy One of Israel!”

History has a way of repeating itself.

We all know what happens ultimately to a nation when it leaves the truth of God.  The part that really stuck out to me on these verses was people not wanting to hear the Truth.  Fill my ears with pleasant things.  Our pulpits have been doing that for a long time now.  As a result it’s hard to tell the difference in many cases of those who attend church and those who don’t.

Either we want God and Jesus or we don’t.  Gray area thinking and fence walking is not the place to please the Lord.  We need to be loving to a dying world, but that doesn’t mean accept things as alright which are wicked to the Lord.  This country and the world are asking for no more Truth.  They don’t want to be confronted with it.

There is one vote that counts after we take our last breath.  The majority rule doesn’t come from a large group of democratic people at the polls when regarding our destiny.  We need to make Jesus Lord and seek diligently for what He wants for our lives.  Live your remaining time to please Him.

 
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>Jesus<

24 Sep

Where is Jesus found in the Bible?  New Testament?

Unfortunately it took me quite awhile and study, to figure out where Jesus was really found in the Bible.  The reason?  It kept expanding until I realized Genesis 1:1 has Him in it and Revelation 22:21 has Him in it, which are the first and last verses in the Bible.

Well Revelation 22:21 is pretty easy.

Revelation 22:21 – 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.

The last verse in the Bible has Jesus written all over it.  By the way the second to last verse says that He is coming soon.  As a lover of Bible Prophecy I couldn’t let that one pass.

So how is He in verse 1 of Geneses?

Genesis 1:1 –1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Wait a minute that says God?  Where is Jesus in that?

In Genesis 1:26 when man was being created by God we have company.

Genesis 1:26 – 26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

Us.  It appears God has a helper.  Let’s look further.

John 1:1-3 – 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

The Word is Jesus.  We know He was with God in the beginning.  That’ where Genesis 1:1 starts and we know that without Him nothing was made that has been made.

As many of you know there is plenty of scripture linking the Father and Son as One.  We won’t concentrate on that in this post.  The point of this post was to indicate that >Jesus< is from the beginning of the Bible to the end.

Only three chapters into Genesis we have a plan for redemption and He is obviously very involved in that.  He is Lord of the church and everyone who asks for forgiveness, accepts His sacrifice, and makes Him Lord will be saved.  He also has a promise that He will rule on the Throne of David over the Jewish people that remain for one thousand years when He comes back in the last days.

Front to back, beginning to end, the Word of God is Jesus, through and through.

 
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Proverbs 19:3

20 Sep

Proverbs 19:3 – 3 A person’s own folly leads to their ruin,
yet their heart rages against the Lord.

It’s hard to believe that some people want nothing to do with God and when something goes wrong they want to blame Him for the issues that are troubling them.

There are those who believe God gave them life and a brain, so they should be able to act and do whatever they see as fit.  They think ultimately He doesn’t care, He’s too busy.  Yet when something goes tragically wrong and they realize they can’t do it on their own, they want help.  If the help comes, they are back to not needing God again.  If the problem doesn’t get cleared up, they blame God.

Why is this?  Well it starts with SELF-ish behavior.  I…don’t need you right now, I….got it.  Whoops, things are bad….help ME.  Whew, things are better now…I… don’t need you again.  Oh no…things have gotten bad….God don’t You care about ME.

The person that lives for themselves and only cares about God when things are bad doesn’t care about God.  They care about….themselves.

What do we have a tendency to do when things go bad?   We blame others.  So why not just go straight to the top?  Right?  Blame God.

Not seeking God leads to this folly.

God is not too busy.  God didn’t make you to be your own little god.  He created us for fellowship, for us to worship Him, and with our own free will follow and love Him.

So who wants us to be our own little decision making gods?  Who wants us to get mad at God when we finally dig ourselves in a whole so large we can’t get out on our own?  He is a pretty evil persuasive salesman.  He sold Eve on the idea becoming like God and Adam followed.  He convinced a third of the angels to rebel.  He’s an enemy of the Great, Incredible, Powerful and Loving God who created all. Yes, Satan himself.

The bible says the road is wide to destruction and narrow to eternal life.  Not because the test is hard, but because man’s heart is hard.  He says WE choose it.

Don’t be an enemy of God.  There is no middle ground.  You either choose Him (see how to be saved page in the right side of my home page) or choose anything else but Him.

For those who have a whole lifetime to choose Him and don’t, would they be happy in Heaven?  The answer simply is no, they would not.  Because Heaven is not a wonderful place that the SELFISH go to be happy and live strictly for their own selfish cares and desires.  It’s centered around our loving Lord Who created the whole universe and everything in it.  Will it be great for those who do love Him?  Yes!  He longs to take care of those who have chosen to love Him and love them back.  We can’t even fathom how wonderful.

Seek Him, study His Word, and do everything possible out of your love for Him.  We’re in the home stretch and time is running out.  Even if He tarries, one more day passes that we can show Him our love.  The harvest is plentiful and the workers are few.  Why, because they choose to not participate.

 
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